Wireless communication is a virtual necessity in today's society. People use cordless phones, cellular phones, wireless data communication devices, etc. on a daily basis. The ability to communicate wirelessly has become pervasive in homes, businesses, retail establishments, and in the outdoors generally. Consequently, people can now communicate while in transit and in almost any environment.
Wireless communication involves the use of a limited resource: the electromagnetic spectrum. Different wireless communication schemes involve using different bands or segments of the electromagnetic spectrum in different manners. Typically, each particular segment of the electromagnetic spectrum is utilized in accordance with a wireless standard that has been created by a government entity and/or an industry consortium.
There are many wireless standards under which wireless devices operate today. Example wireless standards include, but are not limited to, Bluetooth, Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)-2000, Wideband-CDMA (WCDMA), Wi-Fi, WiMAX, and so forth. Wireless standards that have a marketing-oriented name typically also have a corresponding more technical name for the standard. For example, the term “Wi-Fi” is usually considered to correspond to at least the IEEE 802.11(a), (b), and (g) standards. Similarly, the term “WiMAX” is usually considered to correspond to at least a subset of the IEEE 802.16 standard.
Devices that operate in accordance with any of these or many other standards can generally receive and transmit electromagnetic signal waves. The power involved in the transmission and reception of the signals is usually regulated to avoid wasting power at the device and to avoid unnecessary interference between competing electromagnetic signal waves that are simultaneously traveling through the same airspace. Consequently, measuring the energy of a received signal wave is a common aspect of the signal wave reception process.